Ah, Taroko! Even the name, which means “human being” in the language of the indigenous Truku tribe evokes magic.Best known for its gorgeous gorge, the park itself is known collectively as Taroko Gorge National Park.

The east coast is often described as “isolated,” kept locked away from the rest of the island by the soaring, rugged, thick central mountains. But this is meant in a decidedly positive sense, and in a relative sense – the west and north are busy and densely populated, the east coast virginal and unspoiled, sparsely populated, laid-back, even sleepy.

Hualien County is a powerful place. Nature is master, man mere spectator, despite oft thinking otherwise. Though just a few score kilometers away from the west coast as the eagle flies, Taiwan’s Hawaii-like coastal Hualien “secret garden” could not be further away from its indus